Special assignment: A grand welcome for a historic steam locomotive

SCHOLPP colleagues in Dietzenbach and Chemnitz spent a year and a half planning this special project: On May 10, the 39-metric-ton Prussian T13 steam locomotive was transported to the ‘Erlebniswelt Dampflok’ (Steam Locomotive Experience), which is scheduled to open in Meiningen, Thuringia, in 2024. Colleagues from SCHOLPP Kran & Transport GmbH in Stuttgart provided support with a truck-mounted crane. For lifting and positioning, SCHOLPP engineers had designed a special outdoor platform as well as transfer tracks.

Even the experienced SCHOLPP installers don’t get to handle such a special load on the crane hook every day: a Prussian T13 steam locomotive built in 1912. It was restored at the DB Fahrzeuginstandsetzung GmbH vehicle maintenance depot in Meiningen and is the main exhibit at the new ‘Erlebniswelt Dampflok’, also in Meiningen. Using a truck-mounted crane (220 metric tons), SCHOLPP’s installers effortlessly lifted 39 metric tons of steel into the air and positioned it next to the building.

Extensive planning: Development of a technical feasibility concept

But what looked so easy to the spectators was actually quite challenging. A full 10 years went by from the initial idea and the painstaking restoration to the installation of the locomotive in May 2023. Of that time, SCHOLPP engineers in Dietzenbach and Chemnitz spent a year and a half planning the details of this complex project in advance. As part of this process, a feasibility study was conducted that required complex calculations of the loads occurring in the locomotive due to asymmetrical load distribution. The attaching, lifting, and moving of the locomotive were planned and calculated individually for each project phase.

The heavy load was transported from the restoration site to the museum using a lowboy trailer (10-axle lowboy semi-trailer) from SCHOLPP. It took 15 days to carry out the project, nine of which were spent preparing the museum grounds to position and set up the truck-mounted crane, winches, and installation equipment on the construction site.

Installation using custom-built structures: Platform and transfer tracks

A key element of the delivery concept was an outdoor platform with transfer tracks, designed in-house by SCHOLPP. This heavy-duty platform was placed in front of the museum building to bridge the difference in elevation between the outdoor area and the exhibition hall. The transfer tracks connected seamlessly and ran through the museum. One challenge was to balance the center of gravity, given the asymmetrical load distribution when lifting the locomotive.

The steam locomotive was lifted directly from the truck onto the outdoor platform using a truck-mounted crane and then pulled piece by piece into the museum hall on the transfer tracks using hydraulic grippers. After several hours, the steam locomotive had safely arrived at its designated spot. As complex as the project was, the SCHOLPP team was able to complete the installation with just six experienced installers and one crane operator, thanks to careful planning. Just moments earlier, two other exhibits weighing eight and ten metric tons had been brought into the museum.

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